In what will nearly be a NASCAR regional touring series version of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ “Championship 4” finale, the highest finisher on Sunday among the trio of Doug Coby, Ryan Preece and Woody Pitkat may very well capture the crown.
Coby and Preece enter Thompson tied at 565 points while Pitkat sits third at 561. Bonus points for laps led (one for a lap led, one additional for most led) and for winning (three) the race could certainly come into play, as they have all season, but with such a miniscule points spread, track position will be the primary focus.
Since official race reports started including updated season points in 2000, the closest the championship margin has been entering the final Whelen Modified Tour race was eight points in that 2000 season. Likewise, the record for the closest final championship margin may be in jeopardy. The mark currently stands at three points from 1995 when Tony Hirschman edged Steve Park for the title.
The three have a history this year of running together in races, which may even bring tiebreakers into the discussion when factoring laps led bonus points. In that instance Coby has six victories on the season and thus owns all tiebreakers while Preece’s four wins would give him a tiebreaker over Pitkat, who has one checkered flag.
The following is statistical information on how the three contenders have performed this year, and what each could accomplish if they are able to celebrate Sunday at Thompson.
Tale of the Tape
| DRIVER | STARTS | WINS | POLES | LAPS LED | AVG. FIN. | TSMP SEASON AVG. FIN. | TSMP CAREER AVG. FIN. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coby | 14 | 6 | 5 | 731 | 6.1 | 1.0 | 11.3 |
| Preece | 14 | 4 | 2 | 589 | 5.6 | 6.0 | 11.1 |
| Pitkat | 14 | 1 | 2 | 136 | 4.6 | 3.0 | 15.5 |
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